The Woodcraft Bongo Drums embody tradition combined with exceptional workmanship. They are Meinl's high-end traditional style bongos made with their famous Free Ride Suspension System for super resonance. Made from selected American White Ash with a handsome zebra finish, they come headed with hand-selected True Skin cow hide heads and are secured on with the TTR Traditional Tuning Rim. All the hardware on these hand drums are made solid with strong chrome-plated steel, the way a bongo ought to be.

The Meinl Free Ride system allows bongo shells to resonate beautifully. Traditional hoops allow lugs to connect by V-bracket so there are 8 contact points rather than 4 and tensioning the drumheads is very smooth. The bongos have a 7in. x 9in. head. The 9 inch hembra makes for a beautiful, warm sound. I have both an LP200X and a Pearl Bobby Allende set of bongos, both with fiberglass construction and a more penetrating sound, cutting sound. The LP has 7-1/4 x 8-5/8 heads. The Pearl has 7in. x 8-1/2. I love all three sets but love that the 9in. hembra head on the Meinl allows playing almost like a small conga. It's a beautiful instrument. I got it from Musicians Friend used and it was as described: abolutely mint. I would love to mount it on the wall, its so pretty.

The craftsmanship on these bongos is remarkable. Ash is a beautiful wood and these shells are contoured, sanded, and finished with precision. I had doubts about the freeride suspension system, but after playing them, it has proven to be solid and heavy duty. All of the hardware is heavy duty and the chrome plating is of a good quality. The Hembra drum is larger (9 inches) than other bongos and has a deep tone that really projects. My only disappointment is that the block of the freeride system does not fit my TOCA bongo stand. Other than that, I can't stop looking at them, they are so beautiful!